Currently New York's Fire Department (FDNY) is 86% white, 9% Hispanic and 5% black. By comparison, the NYPD is 52% white, 27% Hispanic, and 16% black.

Following Bill de Blasio’s deal with the black Vulcan firefighter group a payment of $98 million will go to black firefighters adjudged to have been discriminated against.

Black and Hispanic firefighters will now enter the ranks of the FDNY in much greater numbers in the future, reflecting the population of the city of New York, which is how it should be.

However, it does mean the days of the Irish dominating the Fire Department are almost over.

They have served mightily, no more so than on 9/11, when 40% of the 343 firefighters and paramedics who lost their lives were of Irish background.

Historically, as Terry Golway’s wonderful new book “Machine Made” on Tammany Hall shows, the firefighters were a pretty tough lot.

Boss Tweed, among others, made his political reputation as a fire captain. The different units would race each other to blazes and it often ended in fisticuffs as they were paid only for putting out fires.

Like the police department, the fire department was an obvious place to start for Irish immigrants and their sons. It was one of the few institutions that did not discriminate against them and the Irish joined in droves.

It was a highly dangerous job. Manhattan at the time was deeply corrupt, thanks to folks like Tweed and building fire and safety standards were routinely ignored.